Oh My

Today Bitsy had to go to the allergist to start her allergy shots. She's allergic to dust and mold and the doctor, Geo, and I decided that starting allergy shots now would be the best course of action. She's miserable pretty much all year long because you really can't get rid of all the dust in the house and mold is always somewhere.

So we went to the allergist, we walked into the back where she saw the GIANT needles (which were about half an inch in length, at most) and decided she wasn't doing it and took off running. She ran through the back room, out to the front of the office and out the door. When I finally caught up with her, she was sitting in the car with the doors locked sobbing. She screamed "I AM NOT DOING THIS YOU CAN'T MAKE ME GO AWWWWAY"

I got her out of the car-literally kicking and screaming the whole way and wrestled her back into the office for the shots. She continued to carry on until good ole Dr. G came out to talk to her. She LOVES Dr. G, even if she does think his hair is "super creepy". Dr. G came out and talked to her and calmed her down and we got the shots taken care of. Oh the drama. THE DRAAAAMA.

 After she got five hundred stickers and an ice pack, we sat in the waiting room to make sure she wasn't going to have a reaction. Bits and Aubrey (who came with us because she likes to come with us and she KNEW we were going to play with bunnies after the appointment) sat in the waiting room like two little old ladies; they were comparing stories about getting shots and going to the doctor. That calmed Bitsy down significantly and the office staff finally stopped laughing about the whole thing. I was mortified to be very honest and wanted nothing more than to come home and have a cold beer or seventeen...

We went and pet some bunnies, we bought stuffed bunnies, annnnd we had slurpees and all was right with the world again...until next week when we go back for round two. (did I mention we have 35 straight weeks of two shots a week, followed by three months of two shots every other week, followed by three months of two shots every third week???) Now where's that beer?

Happy birthday little bee

Dear Bitsy,
Today you are five. You woke up with a smile on your face, messy hair, and half of your pajamas missing. You're such a funny little thing; you have a great sense of humor, you say things that keep us on our toes constantly, and I think you've even won Boni cat over. You hum when you're happy (which is a lot) you stomp your feet and slam doors when you're not. You sing in the shower at the top of your lungs and your life motto seems to be "dance like no one is watching, sing like no one is listening, but be prepared enough that if you are watched, you look fabulous" Your fashion sense is 2nd to none and no one else makes polka dots, stripes and swirls look as good as you do. You love math, you love writing the alphabet, and maybe, just maybe you'll be a teacher--or a scientist--or an astronaut--or one of the other zillion things you talk about on a regular basis. Your birthday cake this year is going to have a green polar bear on it, per your request, and will be chocolate and delicious and I look forward to watching you dig in. You're an old soul, your soul is possibly older than my own  and every day with you is wonderful; even if you do give me grey hair (and then point them out to me).
I love you more than you'll ever know,
Momma

5 Years Ago...

This is how I looked...we were patiently waiting the arrival of Miss SarahAnne the next day!

So Much Trouble

At dinner tonight, I asked Bits to please take her elbows off the table. She looked at me and asked "why is that a rule?" I told her it was rude and that we just don't do it. She muttered "well it's a dumb rule" and took her arms off the table. I have a bad feeling about this kid...she's gonna be trouble!

Thankful Thursday: The Littlest Thing

I'm thankful today for Bitsy and Bam, who are the littlest things in our house but often give me the biggest laughs. Bam is a dog trapped in a cats' body; he's been crying every time the kiddos go outside because he wants to play with them, unfortunately he's incredibly dumb and we live on a busy road so he cannot go out...today though, Bits and I got him a harness and a leash and my goodness, what a happy kitty and a happy Bitsy we have! I'm not sure WHO was happier, Bits or Bam (or me, who laughed the whole time they were outside exploring!)

Wordless Wednesday: Bowling Birthday Party Weekend

yammer yammer yammer

It's been downright delicious outside the last few days. The sun is shining, the wind is warm, and the grass is green...we're spending a lot of time outside at the park and down by the river so I'm not blogging a whole lot...

however here are a few gems from the kiddos:

"Mom, you know what I like about you? You're funny and pretty" followed by a smooch (Gabe)

"Hey you...you...you...Nutty McButterson!" followed by giggles, giggles, and more giggles (Bits)

"You know what a matey is right Mom? It's a pirate fellow" followed by a "LAND HO" (Gabe)

"I just followed the boys mom, jeez I knew where I was going because I was chasing them!" followed by an exasperated sigh (Bits)

Very silly children...maybe a picture or two one of these days =D

Lucky Ladies

Today Bits and I went out for a ladies lunch; we split some guacamole and chips, a virgin strawberry daiquiri, and some chicken quesadillas. We didn't talk about much of anything, just ate and relaxed and listened to the music. After having lunch we ran to the library where we checked out some videos and a few books, then we went to the gas station to fill up the beast (side note: I doubled the value of our car today by filling the tank LOL). While we were inside, she asked for a diet coke and some popcorn, which of course, I let her get because who doesn't love diet coke and popcorn!? As we were driving home, our new favorite song "Good Feeling" by Flo Rida came on and we sang at the top of our lungs while munching popcorn and sipping diet coke. We got home and Bits looked at me and said "You know Mom, we really are two lucky ladies, aren't we? We had lunch and popcorn and heard our song and now we're home and it's so nice out that we can sit in the sun"

And she's RIGHT. We *are* lucky ladies...and I'm lucky enough to have a mini momma like her to remind me of this fact on a regular basis...

If you're so inclined, have a listen to our new favorite song...it's a perky sing-a-long kind of song!
Good Feeling

And Yet Another Thing to Deal With

Because our life isn't nearly interesting or busy enough, we've decided to add something to the mile long list of things we deal with every day. We've finally gotten some answers on some of Gabriels' more annoying habits and behaviors and it's a naughty A word...Asperger's Syndrome. This is a diagnosis three years in the making. We've already had ADHD, ADD, and OCD ruled out and now it appears that AS is going to stick. It makes sense, he's been showing signs and symptoms for years, he has a shunt (the stats on children with shunts who also have AS are ridiculously high) and quite frankly, if I'm honest with myself, I've known for years that this was coming.

What does that mean for us? A few more specialist and a few more doctors' bills to pay...and a few new coping techniques, but other than that? Not much. Gabe is Gabe is Gabe is Gabe. He's a little "left of center", a bit odd, a bit of a weirdie...but so are the rest of us. I mean, seriously, Geo and I had an in-depth conversation about the impact beavers have on our environment (fun fact: beavers are the only other mammal capable of changing the landscape as rapidly as humans-chew on that ha ha) today and that's a NORMAL conversation for us.

Gabe is really really bright (look at me being oh so humble) and that doesn't help him. He's so damn smart that when he gets interested in something he needs to know everything about it and then feels like he needs to share it with EVERYONE whether or not they are interested (and with the exception of a few like minded Witkowski's-you know who you are lol-not many people care about the inner workings of a jet or want to hear about Captain America for twenty minutes straight) He's always been socially awkward, we just thought he'd outgrow it...turns out he probably won't but that's ok. We love him, quirks and all :)

The biggest issue now is dealing with being part of two disabled worlds: the visible and invisible. People don't understand why an articulate 8 year old melts down over seemingly nothing. People don't understand that an 8 year old can't wear a tag in his clothes because it literally gives him welts on his skin. People don't understand why he NEEDS to tell you the type of jet they used in World War two and when you cut him off he gets pissed. Asperger's has gotten a really bad rap as of late because so many people are "self diagnosing" themselves; it's become somewhat of a buzzword diagnosis; something parents can slap on their children to excuse pretty much any and every type of crap behavior they'd like to. Those sorts of situations make it much harder for me to say "I'm sorry he's on the floor screaming right now, but he has AS" because no one believes it; they think I'm another bad mother with a bratty kid I can't keep under control. Trust me, that's not the case, no one wants their kid up off the floor more than I do.

Gabe knows he's different; he knows he has a large scar on his back, walks with a limp, and has to see doctors other kids his age don't need to see. He's not stupid, he knows that he has AS too, even if he hasn't been able to put a name to it. He told me the other day that he wishes he didn't have fits or feel "weird" inside, that he doesn't like it and that pretty much killed me. Here's my sweet 8 year old baby who is not only "different" on the outside and knows it, he now knows he's different on the "inside" too. It's a really helpless feeling when your kid tells you something like this; in the meantime all we can do is keep reminding him we love him, keep taking him to the best counselors and doctors we can find, and keep getting up each day with the hope that it'll be a better day for all of us. Because at some point, it WILL be a better day for us, it's just a matter of getting there.

Happy Birthday!!

A very happy birthday to Great Grandpa Harvey who is 80 today!! We love you!

Thankful Thursday: Sunshine

I'm thankful that yesterday was nearly 60 degrees and sunny. We needed a mood boost and that did it, especially since it's only about 35 degrees and overcast today. I was able to open windows and hang laundry on the line yesterday-all the blankets smell like a fresh breeze and made sleeping just a bit easier last night, with dreams of spring in our minds.

What are you thankful for today?